Iroquoian Dream Cult

The Iroquois Huron and Seneca American Indians, as early as the first European contact in the 17th century, had developed a deeper psychological understanding than the white races of the time. They had no divinity but the dream – wrote Father Fremin who studied their customs. They clearly described the conscious and unconscious, and said that through dreams the hidden or unconscious area of the psyche makes its desires known. If it does not receive these desires it becomes angry. The Iroquois therefore developed a system of allowing the dreamer to act out their dreams socially. Although a moral and disciplined group, during such acting-out the dreamer was allowed to go beyond usual social boundaries. This included receiving valuable objects or making love to another persons spouse. This was to allow unconscious desires to be expressed, thus avoiding sickness of body or mind. Such hidden desires were seen as the basis of social as well as individual problems. See Native American Dream Beliefs


Comments

-luis Gonzalez 2015-10-01 0:18:31

I have dreamt about a small grey young rabbit tunnelling in to my home from under a sink..wich was thought to at first been an evil spirit trying to get inside my home..what does this mean? If appreciate any help thanks.

    -Anna - Tony's Assistant 2015-10-20 15:08:24

    Dear Luis – What “tunnelled” into your home – your home is a symbol for your mind http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/the-house-in-your-dream/ – is something you have repressed at first, because you have perceived it as evil.
    Evil is ‘live’ spelt backwards. In dreams the sense or presence of evil is often depicting those things you have so repressed that they are no longer properly alive and healthy. Repression has turned them back upon you making them an internal evil. They therefore need meeting and being brought into proper recognition and expression.
    Whatever threatens our ‘I’ or ego is often felt to be evil, even if it is natural (sexual) urges.
    What is a wonderful step towards integration is that you are becoming aware in your dream that it is not an evil spirit.
    To get a feeling understanding what the rabbit in your dream symbolises you could use “Being the rabbit”- http://dreamhawk.com/dream-encyclopedia/acting-on-your-dream/#BeingPerson
    See also http://dreamhawk.com/dream-dictionary/rabbit/
    Anna 🙂

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